Said skiles



(No Model.)

H. H. SKILES & H. C. BOLL.

TONGUELESS BUCKLE. No. 584,098. Patented June 8,1897.

vfimm lwve/vu s1 r @bga k Y .r W i W @vw g UNITED STATES PATENT ErrcE.

HARRY ll. SKILES AND HENRY C. BOLL, OF CRESTON, IOXVA; SAID SKILES ASSIGNOR TO SAID BOLL.

TONGUELESS BUCKLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent 1T0. 584,098, dated June 8, 1897.

Application filed February 16 1897. Serial No. 623,752. (No model.)

To (1 whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, HARRY l-I. SKILES and HENRY G. BOLL, citizens of the United States, residing at Oreston, in the county of Union and State of Iowa, have invented a new and useful Tongueless Buckle, of which the following is a specification.

Our object is to provide a simple, strong, neat, and durable tongueless buckle adapted for detachably connecting hitching-straps with a bridle, holdback-straps with a harness, and for all the various purposes for which snap-hooks and buckles having tongues have heretofore been used.

A further object is to reinforce and protect the leather to which our buckle is fixed and to dispense with the use of loops for securing the free end portions of leatherstraps when buckled fast to a bridle or other parts of a harness.

Our invention consists in the buckle made and applied and operated as hereinafter set forth, pointed out in our claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which-- Figure 1 is a perspective view of one of the parts of our two-part buckle, and Fig. 2 shows the form of the part that is adapted to be slidingly connected therewith. Fig. 3 shows the two parts separately applied to a leather strap at some distance apart. Fig. 4 shows the strap connected with a ring and the two parts of the buckle united as requiredin practical use for detachably connecting a leather strap with a bridle-ring or some portion of a harness. Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view on the line :cm of Fig. 4, showing the relative positions of all the overlying parts. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view on-the line y y of Fig. 4-.

The letter A designates a flat metal plate turned upward and inward at its parallel edges 11 in such a manner that they will serve as bearings within which to slide a leather strap and the other part of the buckle fixed to the strap, as shown in Fig. 3.

0 represents a slide made of a flat springinetal plate, bowed upward at its central portion and adapted in size and shape to fit in the bearings at the parallel sides of the part A, as clearly shown in Fig. 5. It is pretenably rounded at its ends and one end doubled backward to produce an integral guard (I,

that will restrict the sliding thereof when in position, as shown in Fig. 4,, and as required to fasten the two parts together when in use. Each of the two parts is provided with perforations to allow the passage of rivets as required to facilitate fixing them to a leather strap, as shown in Fig. 3.

It is obvious that our two-part buckle can be made any size desired and finished in ornamental style by any known process.

In the practical use of our invention the end of the strap to which the part A is fixed is passed through a ring and the strap then doubled in such a manner that the part 0 can be readily slipped into the bearings b of the part A and drawn or pressed into an overlying position relative to the plate A, as shown in Fig. 4:. The outward bend or how in the part 0 normally presses against the parallel edges b of the part A, as required to clasp the two parts together, so there will be no rattling and no accidental slipping out of the part 0.

To unbuckle and detach the strap from the ring, it is sirnbly necessary to overcome the spring force of the part 0 that binds it to the part A by pressure upon the central portion of the part 0 to relax the binding force and to then slide it away from the part A, so that the end of the strap extended through the ring will be free to be withdrawn therefrom.

Ve claim as our invention- 1. The metal plate A provided with bearings b at its edges and rivet-holes in its body portion, and the plate 0 bowed at its center to serve as a spring and provided with rivetholes and an integral guard (Z at one end, substantially as shown and described for the purposes stated.

2. A tongueless buckle consisting of a flat metal plate having bearings at its side to engage a plate fitted to slide in. said bearings and a springrnetal plate bowed at its central portion and provided with a guard at one end to restrict its motion relative to said bearings and the two plates fixed to a leather strap at some distance apart to operate in the manner set forth, for the purposes stated.

HARRY H. SKILES. HENRY (3. ROLL. Witnesses:

J. H. Corunnnrrnn, SAM R. ALLEN. 

